- Non-Mac. I want windows system. - Budget is between $1,000-$2,000.- I want a laptop that can do photo/video editing effortlessly.- A laptop with decent display quality to see relatively accurate colors (not sure if IPS necessary)- Good balance between portability and power. For me power is even more important than small size but laptop shouldn't be so big that not possible to transport.- Display size 14''-15.6''.

I have been looking at Gaming laptops and the "MSI GP62M 7RDX-256CA Leopard Gaming Notebook" looks like a good price/performance compromise, but the display is not IPS although description claims it is good. Not sure if display good enough for photo editing.https://ca.msi.com ...6CA-Leopard#hero-overview

Hoping you do get some recommendations here, because I'm pretty looking for the same thing.

I made the mistake of getting a laptop that was said to have a "good" non-IPS screen and I mostly regret it. I can still edit fairly accurately after calibration but going between my laptop and my ultrasharp at home is night and day. IPS panels are increasingly common in laptops, so do yourself a favor and just make sure it has one.

Probably the best option for portability, IPS screen with wide color range, and enough horsepower for video editing is getting a Dell XPS 15. They offer quad core i7s and dedicated GeForce 1050 graphics. I just bought a Lenovo Yoga 720-15IBK, thinking I'd like to have a 2 in 1 . The Lenovo is the only 2 in 1 that has a quad core i7 and the GeForce 1050. I got the version with a 4K monitor that is IPS (but isn't quite as bright and has a slightly narrower color gamut as the XPS 15). It was cheaper, and was looking forward to having it double as a drawing/ 3D modeling tool as well (bought the Wacom Bamboo Ink). I saw rosy reviews for it online, and have found my unit is pretty solid with no screen wobble. However, while installing more software on it today, I noticed a diagonal black line on the top of the display. I then googled and found a long thread on Lenovo's site with other Yoga 720 4K owners having the same diagonal bar issue. It's rumored that Lenovo has a fix for it now. While chatting with support today, they said I could either return the laptop to my retailer (Best Buy), or send it for repair. Since the thread had owners who exchanged their units with new ones that would exhibit the same problem, I've decided to try the Lenovo repair service. Looks like it's going to be over a week of them sending a box (they recommend not shipping my laptop with original packaging since I won't see it again), repair (if the parts are in), and send back to me. But I'm going through with it, since the laptop was a good deal and has better specs then the other 2 in 1s.

The XPS 15 has been out for awhile, and I know owners who haven't had any hardware issues. Most laptops seem to have i7 dual core processors to have better battery life. Fewer laptops offer higher performance with the i7 quad core. I know one person who just recently got a XPS, and he said that the computer itself works really well...but he finds the new trackpad software annoying (IE it automatically trying to snap a window to the edge of the screen while you just want to drag it slightly). If you're the sort to uninstall bloatware as soon as you get a new computer, then you might not run into that issue.

davesrose wrote in post #18444557Probably the best option for portability, IPS screen with wide color range, and enough horsepower for video editing is getting a Dell XPS 15. They offer quad core i7s and dedicated GeForce 1050 graphics. I just bought a Lenovo Yoga 720-15IBK, thinking I'd like to have a 2 in 1 . The Lenovo is the only 2 in 1 that has a quad core i7 and the GeForce 1050. I got the version with a 4K monitor that is IPS (but isn't quite as bright and has a slightly narrower color gamut as the XPS 15). It was cheaper, and was looking forward to having it double as a drawing/ 3D modeling tool as well (bought the Wacom Bamboo Ink). I saw rosy reviews for it online, and have found my unit is pretty solid with no screen wobble. However, while installing more software on it today, I noticed a diagonal black line on the top of the display. I then googled and found a long thread on Lenovo's site with other Yoga 720 4K owners having the same diagonal bar issue. It's rumored that Lenovo has a fix for it now. While chatting with support today, they said I could either return the laptop to my retailer (Best Buy), or send it for repair. Since the thread had owners who exchanged their units with new ones that would exhibit the same problem, I've decided to try the Lenovo repair service. Looks like it's going to be over a week of them sending a box (they recommend not shipping my laptop with original packaging since I won't see it again), repair (if the parts are in), and send back to me. But I'm going through with it, since the laptop was a good deal and has better specs then the other 2 in 1s.

The XPS 15 has been out for awhile, and I know owners who haven't had any hardware issues. Most laptops seem to have i7 dual core processors to have better battery life. Fewer laptops offer higher performance with the i7 quad core. I know one person who just recently got a XPS, and he said that the computer itself works really well...but he finds the new trackpad software annoying (IE it automatically trying to snap a window to the edge of the screen while you just want to drag it slightly). If you're the sort to uninstall bloatware as soon as you get a new computer, then you might not run into that issue.

What about the Dell Precision Mobile workstations?I think they are supposed to be even better although at a higher price?

Depends on your tasks. If your intent was 3D graphics, then I'd say it's worth the extra price. I have been using a Dell Precision with Nvidia Quadro M2000 card for a number of years now. I'm surprised by how well it still performs at my 3D animation tasks. It's a 15.6 HD panel (back when laptops didn't have IPS). So I do find the new 4K IPS panels to offer a visual improvement. My precision is nice in that it's large and modular: it has several PCIe slots in the bottom. So I've got it configured with a 256GB SSD as well as 1TB HD. It's got a disc bay. I never replaced the battery, so battery life is abysmal on it. So it's nothing like the new laptops, which favor slimmer designs, and long battery life. I think the XPS is a good middle ground, and the GeForce 1050 with quad core i7 should be good for video rendering. My past experience with 3D apps is that they are more stable and perform better with Quadro cards. Though I've noticed on Autodesk's site that the most recent versions of Maya have some GeForce cards listed as being compatible. I'll test out the GeForce 1050 with 3D sculpting on the Lenovo when I've got it repaired. I'll also be setting the Lenovo as another render slave machine: setting primary renders on the workstation and doing network rendering with as many CPU cores I've got in the house!

Edit: just finished installing Maya on the Lenovo. Making just a simplistic scene seems to load and render OK (though do notice OpenGL shadows can't be enabled on the display:main advantage of Quadro cards isn't so much speed, but full OpenGL support). Also see that Maya supports touch screen: I can orbit, pan, and dolly all with finger gestures on the screen!

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